44 rue du Docteur Roux

I have moved. Why? What was wrong with Emma and her perfect flat on Rue la Bruyère? Well, nothing was wrong with it per se. When I first showed up in Paris the idea was that I would crash with Emma for the first few weeks and then we’d discuss and see how things were going. That conversation was significantly delayed because of life getting in the way, but finally we did sit down and chat. Emma made the valid point that my American fresh-out-of-college lifestyle was on a somewhat different wavelength than what she is used to and perhaps I would have more fun having a place of my own. She also said, “It’s not your fault you’re loud, it’s just that you’re American.”

My reactions to this turn of events were many and varied. I didn’t disagree with her; I did often spend my days lazing around the flat and my nights out until the wee hours, and I can be loud (though I found it unnecessary to attribute this quality to my nationality).

I was however somewhat shocked to be flung into the impossible Parisian housing market without even a chance to redeem my ways. Life at Emma’s had generally been just that—life AT EMMA’S, so I was almost excited about the prospect of HAVING a place of my own. But I was not at all excited about the prospect of FINDING a place of my own. I had friends who had been looking for 6 weeks and still hadn’t found anything; Emma was giving me until the end of November; time to get a move on…

The details of searching for a flat are painful and uninteresting. If you’re familiar with the New York housing market, envision that but as a foreigner from a generally despised country. However, I can’t really complain, because in contrast to my many friends who were and are still searching nearly two months into our contracts, I found a place within 10 days.

I’m now living on the other side of town in the 15th arrondissement in a really cute flat with a French kid named Antoine. Antoine is 23, from Lille (a town near the Beligan border), and a business student. He’s spent summers working in California and London so his English is great, and he hopes to return to the US for more business school. So far he’s taught me a lot about French politics, economics and slang, I’ve tried to return the favor.

I would thus like to commence a regular feature of my blogging called “Antoine says…” Naturally Antoine is as fallible as any other mere mortal, and he’s always up for a good debate, so if you’ve heard conflicting opinions do let me know.